How to clear the cache on a Mac step by step

If you haven't cleaned up your Mac in a while, you likely have gigabytes of cached files taking up space and slowing down performance . The cache is designed to speed up the system, but when it accumulates uncontrollably, it can cause the opposite: slow startups, apps that freeze, web pages that don't load properly, and strange errors that you can't pinpoint.

The good news is that you can safely and selectively clear the cache on your Mac without damaging anything important, and notice a clear improvement in speed, stability, and privacy. This comprehensive guide will show you what types of cache exist, why it's a good idea to clear it from time to time, and, most importantly, how to do it step by step on macOS, both manually and with automatic tools.

What is caching on a Mac and what types exist?

Simply put, the cache is fast-access storage containing temporary copies of data that your Mac has already processed. When the system or an app needs something (an image, a script , a preference, a DNS result, etc.), it first checks the cache; if it finds it there, it loads it much faster than if it had to download or generate it again.

Over time , this storage fills up with old or useless information that no longer contributes anything , but still takes up space and can cause errors. In macOS, we can distinguish three main cache groups that can be cleared:

On one hand there is the browser cache , where files from the websites you visit are stored: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, videos, cookies and other elements that allow pages to load faster and remember things like your shopping cart or if you have already logged in.

Next, we have the user or application cache , which consists of temporary files created by all the apps you use: from Safari, Photos, and Maps to Photoshop, Spotify , video editors, games, and development tools like Xcode. This includes things like thumbnails, search history, session data, downloaded resources, and other files generated to speed up performance.

Finally, there's the system cache , which consists of files generated by macOS and internal system services to ensure smoother operation: background processes, frameworks, network services, etc. This data typically resides in locations like /Library/Caches or /System/Library/Caches and should be handled with care because some files are critical.

Why it's worth clearing the cache on a Mac

It might sound paradoxical, but clearing the cache is often one of the easiest ways to reclaim space and restore speed to your Mac . Some users, after years without cleaning, have managed to free up more than 50 or 60 GB simply by deleting obsolete cached files.

Besides freeing up storage, clearing the cache can help you resolve performance issues and strange errors : pages that display incorrectly because Safari is loading an older version, applications that open slowly or crash due to corrupted data, or a system that takes forever to boot because the disk is full of junk.

There's also an important privacy and security component . A lot of sensitive information is stored in your browser cache: preferences, searches, tracking data, session remnants, shopping cart contents, and so on. If someone physically gains access to your Mac or malware exploits these traces, they can learn a great deal about you.

On the other hand, the DNS cache and certain temporary network data can become outdated when servers or IPs change; in these cases, clearing it helps to fix websites that won't open, name resolution errors, or connection failures that are otherwise difficult to diagnose.

As for frequency, there's no fixed rule, but it makes sense to clean up every few months or when you notice clear symptoms : a very slow Mac, apps that are slow to respond, heavy browsers, or a sudden increase in so-called System Data in storage.

Detect which cache is taking up the most space on macOS

Before randomly deleting anything, it's a good idea to see which areas of the system are accumulating the most cache . This way, you can focus your efforts where the problem is most noticeable, without affecting sensitive components.

A useful first stop is the Storage section in System Settings . From the Apple icon in the upper left corner, go to System Settings > Storage and review the recommendations and categories such as System Data or Applications, where a large portion of the cache is stored.

Another key folder is ~/Library/Caches (or ~/Library/Caches), where each app has its own subfolder of temporary files. Simply go to Finder, open the Go menu > Go to Folder, and type in that path to see how much space they're using.

If you're comfortable with the command line , you can open Terminal (Applications > Utilities > Terminal) and use commands like ls ~/Library/Caches to list subdirectories or du -sh ~/Library/Caches/* to see the approximate size of each user cache folder.

In recent versions of macOS, if you enable the Caching feature within System Settings > General > Sharing, Activity Monitor adds a Caching tab. From there, you can see what content is being stored and, if you wish, disable iCloud caching to delete what you no longer need.

Clear browser cache on Mac (Safari, Chrome, Firefox and others)

The browser cache is one of the easiest and safest caches to clear, and it's usually the first one you should empty if pages are slow to load or display outdated information . However, you'll notice that some sites take a little longer the first time you visit them, until they reload their cache.

Also keep in mind that deleting this data may close some sessions on websites you were logged into , although usually saved passwords, bookmarks, and downloaded files are not deleted; what disappears are images, scripts, and other temporary items.

If you use multiple browsers, you'll have to repeat the process in each one, since each browser manages its own cache and they don't share data with each other . Let's start with the one that comes standard with macOS.

How to clear the cache in Safari

Safari's system is somewhat more hidden, because Apple assumes that the average user doesn't need to mess with developer menus. To clear the cache in modern versions of macOS, you can follow these practical steps :

Open Safari, go to the Safari menu in the top bar, and enter Settings (or Preferences in older versions) . Then, go to the Advanced tab and check the box that activates the developer menu, which may be called "Show Develop menu in menu bar" or "Show web developer features" depending on the version.

When you close the settings window, you'll see a new option called Development or Developer in the menu bar. From there, simply select Clear cache to delete your browser's temporary files.

If you like to use the keyboard quickly, Safari offers a very convenient shortcut: simply press Command (⌘) + Option (⌥) + E to clear the cache without navigating through menus. However, this shortcut only works if you have previously enabled Developer Options.

If you want to delete data from a specific site, you can go to Settings > Privacy > Manage website data, find the domain you're interested in, and clear only the cache and cookies for that page . This is useful for resolving issues with specific websites or reducing their tracking capabilities without affecting the rest.

How to clear the cache in Google Chrome for Mac

Chrome is one of the browsers that generates the most cache, especially if you spend many hours watching videos, using web applications, or Google services . To clear it from the internal menus, open the browser and click on the three vertical dots icon in the upper right corner.

In the drop-down menu, go to Settings and, on the left side, tap on Privacy and security . There you'll see the option Clear browsing data; when you open it, you can choose the time range and what types of data you want to delete.

If you're only interested in clearing the cache, make sure to leave the " Cached files and images" box checked . For a deep clean, select "All time" in the time range field. Then confirm by clicking the "Clear data" button.

Another more direct way is to type chrome://settings in the address bar or use the keyboard shortcut Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + Delete, which takes you directly to the data deletion dialog box. From there you can also delete cookies if you want to further limit tracking.

To clear the cache of a single site, Chrome offers a specific section at chrome://settings/content/all, where you can search for a specific website and click the trash can icon to delete all data associated with that domain , including the offline cache.

How to clear the cache in Firefox

In Firefox, the process is similar, although the path changes slightly. With the browser open, open the main menu (three horizontal lines icon) and go to Settings or Preferences , depending on the translation.

Inside, look for the Privacy and Security section and scroll down to Cookies and Site Data. There you'll find a Clear Data button that allows you to select, among other things, the Cached Web Content option; once you confirm, Firefox will delete any temporary files it has stored.

Another classic way is to go to the menu bar, select History > Clear recent history and, in the window that appears, choose the time range (for example, Everything) and activate the Cache checkbox within the list of items to delete.

Just like Chrome, Firefox incorporates a keyboard shortcut for speed: Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + Delete directly opens the dialog box to clear history and cache, without going through the intermediate menus.

If you only want to clear the data for a specific website, you can use the Manage data option in Cookies and site data, locate the domain, and delete only its cache and cookies , leaving the rest of your browsing intact.

Other browsers: Edge, Avast Secure Browser, and similar

Many Chromium-based browsers share a very similar structure for managing the cache. In Microsoft Edge , for example, simply open the three-dot menu, go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services , and click on Choose what to clear under Clear browsing data.

In the window that appears, select the time range, check "Cached files and images," and confirm with the "Clear now" button. The process in browsers like Avast Secure Browser is similar: go to Settings, then Privacy and Security, and use the data cleaner to clear the browser cache.

In almost all of them, a shortcut like Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + Delete also works to open the browsing data clearing window, so you can do a quick cleanup without getting lost in menus.

Clear the application and user cache on Mac

The real juiciest part in terms of space used is usually the user and application cache . This is where apps like Photoshop, Spotify, Steam , video editors, or development environments accumulate gigabytes and gigabytes of resources that you may no longer need.

In principle, it's safe to delete this data, because the apps will regenerate only what's strictly necessary when used again, but it's advisable to proceed with some order and common sense , especially if you're not entirely sure which folder belongs to which application.

Before you start deleting like there's no tomorrow, it's highly recommended to create a backup with Time Machine or, at the very least, duplicate the cache folders you're going to access to another location. That way, if you notice an app behaving strangely after the cleanup, you can always restore the files you deleted.

Keep in mind that when you clear this type of cache, some apps may take a little longer to start the first time after the deletion, as they will have to rebuild their temporary files and indexes . This is normal; the important thing is that they will run more smoothly afterward.

How to manually clear the user cache

To access the user cache, open Finder and in the menu bar select Go > Go to Folder. In the box that appears, type ~/Library/Caches (make sure to include the tilde ~, which indicates your user folder) and press Enter.

You'll see a bunch of subfolders with names that usually begin with com.apple or com.appName. Each one stores the cache related to a specific program . The safest thing to do is not to delete the folders themselves, but only the contents within them.

If you want to be on the safe side, you can select all the items in a folder with Command (⌘) + A, right-click, and choose Move to Trash , instead of using commands that delete irreversibly. Then, empty the Trash once you've verified that everything is working correctly.

Some people prefer to first move all those files to a temporary folder (for example, on the Desktop), use their Mac for a couple of days, and if they don't find any problems, permanently delete that copy . It's a small precaution in case an app has the bad habit of saving important settings in the cache.

In any case, it's important to close the applications whose cache you're clearing, because if they remain open, they may write new files to those locations while you're trying to delete them, or data in use may become corrupted.

How to safely clear the system cache

The system cache is another story. It usually resides in paths like /Library/Caches or /System/Library/Caches, and although in many cases you can delete part of its contents without any problems, there is a risk of deleting essential macOS files.

If you still want to delete only non-critical items, open Finder, go to Go > Go to Folder, and type /Library/Caches . Inside, you'll find several folders associated with system services and Apple components.

The wisest recommendation is to leave /System/Library/Caches untouched and limit yourself to cleaning up clearly redundant entries in /Library/Caches, first reviewing the function of each item. A simple trick is to search the folder name online; if you see that it's linked to a critical process, it's best to leave it alone.

If you're comfortable using Terminal, you could also use commands like `rm -rf` to delete content directly, but there's no room for error: if you choose the wrong path, the files will disappear without going to the Trash. Unless you have experience, it's preferable to use less aggressive methods or a cleanup tool that filters out harmful files.

In any case, before experimenting with the system cache, it's worth considering whether it wouldn't be better to use a specialized cleaner that distinguishes between files that are safe to delete and essential data , so you don't have to go folder by folder risking it.

Clear the DNS cache and improve page resolution

The DNS cache is a specific type of system cache that stores the correspondence between domain names and IP addresses . This allows your Mac to resolve a URL on the fly when you type it into your browser, without having to query the DNS servers each time.

The problem arises when that information becomes outdated or corrupted, for example, after server configuration changes, website migrations, or even certain malware infections. In these situations, you might find that some pages stop loading or point to incorrect sites.

The solution involves "purge" the DNS cache so the system forgets old entries and queries the updated data. This process doesn't delete your browsing history or affect cookies; it simply resets the name resolution tables.

To flush the DNS cache on macOS, open Finder, go to Applications > Utilities, and launch Terminal. In the window that opens, enter the following command and press Enter: `sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder .` You will be prompted for your Mac administrator password.

When you type it, you won't see any periods or asterisks; this is normal behavior. After pressing Enter again, if the command executes without errors, the DNS cache will have been cleared, and the system will start from scratch when resolving domains.

Restart your Mac and use safe mode to clear caches

Before you overcomplicate things, remember that a simple Mac restart removes a significant portion of temporary files , especially app caches and processes that only run while the session is open. If it's been weeks since you last shut down your computer, this can be a very effective first step.

To restart, click the Apple icon in the upper-left corner and choose Restart. macOS will log off, offload processes from memory, and, upon restarting, rebuild several volatile caches that are sometimes the cause of slow performance.

If you notice that the system is running particularly poorly or suspect conflicts with third-party extensions, you can try booting into Safe Mode . This mode disables non-essential components, checks the boot disk , and performs additional cleanup of certain cached components.

Entering safe mode varies slightly depending on the Mac model and macOS version, but generally involves starting up while holding down a specific key (such as Shift) or following Apple's instructions for your specific model. Once in safe mode, the system operates in a more limited way, but it allows you to isolate whether the problems originate from third-party software or macOS itself.

After using safe mode, a normal restart will return the computer to its usual behavior, taking advantage of the adjustments and cleanups that were performed during the special boot.

Use automatic tools to clear cache on Mac

Everything we've seen so far can be done manually, but it requires time, some experience, and great care to avoid deleting anything critical . That's why specialized utilities have emerged to automate the cleaning of caches and other temporary files.

Applications such as CleanMyMac X, Avast Cleanup, AVG TuneUp for Mac, or integrated solutions in suites like Setapp offer modules that scan the system, user, and browser caches , mark which items are safe to delete, and take care of deleting them in seconds.

The main advantage of these tools is that they apply filters to prevent you from touching sensitive areas, group information so you can see at a glance which apps are taking up the most space, and allow you to schedule automatic maintenance so your Mac doesn't get filled to the limit with junk files again.

Many of these tools offer a free trial for a few days, more than enough time to thoroughly clean up caches, error reports, log files, forgotten downloads , and duplicate or low-quality photos. After that, if you decide to continue using them, they help keep your system running smoothly without having to constantly open Terminal or sift through cryptic folders.

While not essential, they are very useful for those who don't want to risk deleting system files or prefer to save time . Ultimately, the idea is that you focus on working or enjoying your Mac while the tool does the dirty work behind the scenes.

With all of the above, you can see that the cache is an essential ally for your Mac to run fast, but also a source of problems when it accumulates uncontrollably. Knowing what types of cache exist, how to locate them, and what you can safely delete allows you to recover many gigabytes, fix browsing and application errors, and strengthen your privacy . If you combine a few basic manual cleanups with an occasional restart and, if needed, an automatic maintenance utility, you'll have your storage under control and your Mac will run as smoothly as expected for much longer.